Becciu trial, Commissioner De Santis: "The cardinal knew how Marogna used the money"

“As of 3 October 2020

was informed that

He had known about it for months.

by what we said about the woman's behavior.

He was only

Cecilia Marogna's

, "Because this, he said, would have caused serious damage to him and his family".

Words as heavy as boulders, pronounced today in the courtroom by the commissioner of the Gendarmerie

, a witness for the prosecution in the trial underway in the Vatican on

.

De Santis, in his 29th hearing, further clarified what he said yesterday about the meeting he had in the cardinal's home on the evening of October 3 two years ago, together with the commander of the gendarmerie

, a few days after the dramatic hearing in which

.

In yesterday's hearing, among other things, the defendant Becciu declared that the meeting of 3 October "was not requested by me" and that he himself

the money used by Cecilia Marogna for purposes other than those for which he had received it;

at this point, again according to Becciu, "I was blocked by the commander and the commissioner of the Gendarmerie".

De Santis' version is different: "Gauzzi had received a text message from the cardinal, he asked me to accompany him to his home" said the commissioner.

“Seeing no sign of surprise from the cardinal, I assumed that the meeting had been arranged and that it was he who had asked for it.

The circumstance of keeping that meeting secret is not the truth.

We have never asked the cardinal not to talk about it, ever, also because in the Vatican such a circumstance would have leaked out very easily anyway.

And I've never heard that it was necessary to preserve Cecilia Marogna because she was in charge of an activity known only to Card.

Becciu and the pope.

No reference was ever made to this, except later, when the cardinal was interrogated by the promoter of justice Milan and by the deputy Diddi”.

pay

Another image of Cardinal Becciu next to the Pope's Almoner, Cardinal Krajewski

Urged in this regard by questions from Attorney General Diddi, De Santis continued his story: “On that occasion we were the ones who spoke about Cecilia Marogna, based on the analysis of current accounts and chats.

And, at that date, the cardinal was well informed that the woman plundered the money sent by the Secretariat of State at personal expense” (these are

).

De Santis also recalled that Monsignor

, head of the Administrative Office, already went to Becciu two days after his interrogation on April 29, 2020, informing him that the magistrates were investigating Marogna.

"

was his comment - the Gendarmerie commissioner reiterated - but no one at the time dreamed of investigating Becciu.

Then, that evening of October 3, he didn't ask us what the woman's behavior was.

He was just worried her name wouldn't come up."

Photos from the internal Vatican cameras were also projected in the classroom, showing how on the evening of 17 September 2020

entered

, where Becciu's apartment is located and where the night.

In the morning - De Santis always reported - Becciu first went out and then the nuns who look after the house;

Marogna remained alone in the house.

After the nuns returned, the woman went out and went to the nearby Banca Intesa branch in Borgo Angelico to

from that of his Slovenian company Logsic, where transfers from the Secretariat of State flowed (the operation, among other things, was immediately reported to the Vatican supervisory authorities as "suspicious").

At lunchtime he returned to the apartment with a tray of pastries and left in a taxi in the afternoon.

The pg Diddi also asked De Santis if he was aware of any

- who was

- in the world of intelligence.

“He had none, in the most absolute way” was the answer.

Google Maps

The building on Sloane Avenue, London

During the hearing, reference was also made to the two proposals or expressions of interest for the purchase of

, neither of which went through: one advanced by the

, through the former parliamentarian of Forza Italia, and former undersecretary in the Berlusconi government,

, and the former ambassador in Washington,

- they met the cardinal secretary of state

in the Vatican but in what they reported to him, according to De Santis, "there is nothing true" and behind it there would be the financier

;

the other one,

, by the Fenton Wheelan group, which for information contacted the former owner of the property, headed by Raffaele Mincione.